Painful Loss
by That Wise Guy
Summary: Ash and Serena have suffered a pain that no one should ever experience. It's a pain that sticks with you for so many years. Time will heal those wounds, but for some... time makes things worse. For Ash, Serena is one of those 'some'. Amourshipping. One-shot.


So here's a new one-shot! This one is possibly the saddest one I've ever written and it's possible the biggest fear for anyone when you're... well, you'll read and find out. So, yeah, I had fun writing this - or at least as much fun as I can, considering what the subject matter is. However, you will all enjoy it too! I hope you can feel what they're going through and try to imagine how you would react in this sort of situation.

As always, hope you enjoy it and thank you all for taking the time to read and review! Let me know what you think of it!

* * *

Ash couldn't sleep.

It was 12 at night, but he couldn't sleep. Not one bit. He was sleeping on the couch, which is usually comfortable to sleep on; but again – he just can't sleep. He could hear sobs echo all over the house and he sighs. She has been crying all night. He wishes he could do something, but he just can't. Not now. He's giving her some space so she can let it all out.

His poor wife, Serena, was having a tumultuous period in her life. All he could do was just do nothing, but watch.

Last time he tried to console her, she ended up pushing him away and crying hysterically.

The police were called in and had to question the both of them. It was all a huge misunderstanding and she promised not to throw a fit like that to him again, but the damage was done and she felt even worse than before. He tried to convince her otherwise, but it was no use. In her mind, everything was her fault. Ash hated when she was blaming herself and it hurt him just knowing she was in pain.

Yet, he can't do anything!

It's been going on for days and it hasn't gotten any easier.

Clemont, Bonnie, Miette, her mother, and _his_ mother all attempted to ease her of her pain; but it kept coming back. They would come once in a while to see how she's doing and, to his horror and anger, she would force herself to be cheery, faking an entire persona just to make others feel better. It angered him greatly.

He didn't want to upset her more, so he calmly explained to not do that to them.

She apologized to him and promised she would tell them the truth, but she never did. Every single time, she would create a façade and act out that everything was alright – when in reality, it was far from alright. But to them, they didn't know any better! They were taking her word and kept giving her encouragement.

They sometimes asked about how Ash was taking it all and she once said, "Ash is strong. He's feeling better now as well."

However, it started to worsen and they started to catch her in the act with her acting. They confronted her and she broke down. In a state of absolute of irrationality, she pinned the blame on Ash, much to his chagrin. He still remembered the hurtful statement she spewed out, "Ash just can't let me relax! All this time, he hasn't done anything to help and just makes me feel like crap! I've got no one to talk to and he's not helping me with this at all!"

This caused the others to confront him and he had to defuse the situation that he has tried to help Serena, but she kept pushing him away from it. He even stated he made sure to get rid of any sharp or lethal device, to make sure she doesn't go on a rampage on herself or others. He made a comment how he had to make Pikachu be her bodyguard, along with Delphox.

Delphox, in many cases, was disappointed with how things were going. Her trainer was going crazy in grief and she hasn't really gotten better. She makes sure she uses her psychic powers to constrict Serena lightly so the woman wouldn't flail around and end up hurting herself.

Ash and Pikachu both have had to help keep her relaxed as well, knowing how stressful it must be for the Pokémon to restrain her trainer and friend.

For Pikachu, he's the ever diligent partner of Ash and he constantly makes sure Serena is alright. Whenever Ash is busy with work, Pikachu commands the other Pokémon of both trainers to keep an eyeful watch over Serena. To Pikachu, this was his family and he didn't want anything to go wrong. He felt bad for Serena, but he knew he shouldn't let his guard down at all.

Luckily, there weren't reported cases about her from any of the other Pokémon. Although, she does tend to snap at him a lot for always watching her, whenever she's doing something simple as cooking or even watching T.V.

It's a necessary evil and he must abide by Ash's orders, for everyone's sake.

After the whole breakdown, Ash decided enough was enough and made a call for a psychiatrist. Serena was absolutely livid and yelled at Ash for thinking she was crazy. She wasn't crazy! Why was everyone thinking she was?!

"How dare you?! I'm your wife, Ash Ketchum! I'm not some lunatic ready to commit suicide at the sight of a freaking knife!" Ash remembers her yelling that to him, but he was angry with how she has been acting up and knew he had to set things right, otherwise it'd be worse for them both.

He just didn't think things through, as per usual.

"You may not be, Serena, but you're going way over the top with this! You blamed _me_ for your actions, which made the others angry at me! They thought I was _abusing_ you, Serena! Do you know how bad that makes this out to be?!" he replied back hotly, frustrated with all these events transpiring. He recalled seeing Pikachu and Delphox trying to placate them both, but it was no use.

'The problem isn't me,' he thought bitterly at that time.

His recollection was hazy at best, probably due to them both arguing and the two losing themselves to their anger – which he really needs to work on as well. He never knew how to fully control his anger when stressed.

It bit him in the ass as a result.

He knew he messed up by saying to her, "Listen, Serena! You're making things worse for us! You wallowing in your grief, acting all psychotic, and placing the blame on me isn't bringing our child back!"

The moment he finished that sentence, he felt the most powerful slap in the world. Pikachu and Delphox were appalled by both their actions. Delphox was prepared to use Psychic to stop them from ever getting into a big argument, but she didn't expect a slap _or_ that hurtful phrase!

Delphox did end up using Psychic on both of them, with both her and Pikachu scolding the two of them. It was only after Ash realized what he said that he tried to apologize to her, but the damage was done and she just bolted out of the living room and into their room; slamming the door and locking it.

That was at 9 PM at night.

It's now 12:24 AM and he groans, realizing the time isn't going to speed up just because he was suffering from a flashback.

Pikachu and Delphox were asleep, both on the floor.

Enough was enough, he had to fix this. He can't sleep knowing he caused this huge problem. He still believes in taking her to the psychiatrist, but he needs to let her know he does care for her. In reality, Ash still loves Serena and cares for her immensely, contrary to the circumstances that led to this point in time.

He got up from the couch and from this, both Pikachu and Delphox awoke slowly. Delphox saw Ash getting up and cocked her head to the side, "Del?"

"Oh, sorry, Delphox… Pikachu… I think," he turns his head to where the stairs are, "I think it's time we settled this. I need to apologize to her. I need your help, both of you."

"Pika?"

"Del-del?"

"Yeah, I know. It's a bit troublesome, but I want you all to just force the lock to open. I'll deal with fixing it later if it breaks. Helping out my wife is more important. Then, once that's done, I want you both to make sure she and I don't leave the room until I say so. Got it?" Ash explained the small plan to the both of them and they nod, wanting to finally put this drama to a close.

So Ash and the two Pokémon go up the stairs slowly, not wanting to alert Serena to their presence. They knew if she heard them, she might end up reacting poorly to it. It's best not to let that happen. As they go upstairs, Ash sees another door and he feels a lump in his throat.

There was a small sign on the door that reads:

 _Nursery Room_

It has paw prints painted on it. Ash remembers reading that some of the paw prints belong to baby Pokémon such as Magby, Elekid, Pichu, and various others. He takes some deep breaths and controls the tears welling up in his eyes. Not now… Not now…

He glances to see both of the Pokémon have a sad countenance and he smiles lightly, "It's alright… We'll never forget, but time will heal everything and we'll be ready to move on." He whispers, wanting to make sure Serena doesn't hear. He notices they nod to what he said and they continue to his room.

As they reach the door, Ash turns to Delphox, "Alright, Delphox. Use Psychic on the door." He whispers the command and Delphox's eyes turn blue. The door knob has a blue outline shine all over it as well. About a few seconds later, the door unlocks and opens slowly. The three sigh in relief as Serena didn't hear the door unlock, although they still wince as they also hear her cry and sniff.

Ash slowly opens the door and nods, letting them know he's going in. He slowly and carefully closes the door, locking it. Pikachu is with him, but it goes to the window as to make sure they don't do anything involving it. Delphox is outside the door, waiting patiently for her trainer's husband to say the words. She knows it'll take some time and begins to meditate to sooth her worries.

Ash walks slowly to the bed and sighs, announcing his presence, "Hey, Serena…"

This causes the woman to jump, looking at Ash in disbelief, "H-how –"

"Delphox unlocked it for me." He stated briefly. He wasn't going to let small talk get in the way of it and began to take the lead in the conversation, "Serena, we need to talk."

She turns away, tears still streaming down her face, as she crosses her arms, "Why would you want to talk to me? I'm a psychotic bitch that lost her damn child. Are you here to make me suffer even more?" She turns to him angrily as she asks that. She was ready to throw another fit and he sits down on the bed, causing her to grimace.

"No," he starts off softly, "No… I'm not here to make you suffer. Listen," he lets out a small sigh before continuing, "I'm really – truly – deeply, in fact – sorry for what I've said. I don't know how it feels to have lost a child… I never held the child in my stomach and ultimately lost it… I'm sorry for being so downright rude. It wasn't right of me… in fact, I have no right to judge you in your grief. Again, I'm truly sorry, Serena. I didn't mean to hurt you."

He looks at her, she was silent through it and still was silent. He was about to speak, but Serena cups the cheek she slapped with her hands gently and began to rub it lightly, causing him to wince. She stops the moment he did that and she sniffs, "God… I'm… No, don't apologize, Ash. I… I should be the one at fault. I shouldn't have done what I've done. You had every right… you are my husband and I… I just went off the deep-end!" She sobbed, biting her lip.

She closes her eyes, sobs increasing more, but she continues with her own apology, "I shouldn't have pushed you away like that! I shouldn't have lied and made things worse! Oh my God! Ash, I shouldn't have slapped you! I'm so sorry!" she hugs him tightly, crying, "Please! I'm so sorry! Don't… don't leave me! I'm sorry…"

She kept uttering "I'm sorry" and all Ash did was hold her, tears streaming down his face as he bites his own lips.

"No, Serena, it'll be okay… I promise you! We'll be okay! We'll…. We'll get through this, like we always do! Yeah… you and I, husband and wife, we'll get through this pain…" he kisses her head and puts her head to his chest, wrapping his arms around her. "Serena, I will never leave you. We're both at faults for this, we both caused each other anguish… But… we'll work this out. Remember what I used to say?" he asked her gently.

"Remember what I used to say?" he repeated the question, still gentle with her.

"Y-yeah… 'Never'… 'Never give up until the end'…" she weakly says, hiccupping a bit. She rubs her eyes as she looks at Ash, "… Maybe I _should_ see a psychiatrist… It could help…"

Ash smiles lightly, "We both will see one. I need to work on my anger… I'm sorry, Serena." He apologizes once again and she kisses his cheek.

"We'll work it out, my love," she states softly as she lays her head on his shoulder. She begins to tire out as she closes her eyes, no longer crying. Her eyes are still puffy and red, but to Ash, she's still as beautiful as the moment he laid eyes on her. He kisses her head and lays her down, but he feels her hand on his wrist. "Please… stay with me?" she beckons him with a vulnerable look.

Ash turns to Pikachu, who nods and goes to the door, "Pi-pikachu!" He calls out, signifying Delphox can now unlock the door. Said Pokémon opens it and goes to her trainer, wondering if everything was fully okay. Serena gives a tired smile, rubbing her starter's hands lovingly, "Oh, Delphox… I'm sorry for making you worry… we're fine now…" she yawns and closes her eyes, "Stay with us, Delphox. You too, Pikachu. I need you all here, please."

Pikachu and Delphox smile, nodding. They both cry out in unison, agreeing to her plea.

With that, Ash goes to lay down next to Serena and holds her to him. He wraps his arms around her and she scoots closer to him. Serena breathes slowly, signifying she's sleeping and Ash smiles at her. They both have a long way to go before they ever get over the trauma and the drama, but it's a challenge that they both will take on together.

Ash whispers in her ear, "I love you, Serena."

He could faintly hear Serena reply with a small mumble, "I love you too, Ash."

With that, he finally sleeps.


End file.
